


Passtimes

by aanau



Series: percy jackson the writer [1]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Book 1: The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson), Drabble, F/M, Ficlet, Pre-lukes betrayal, Writer!Percy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-08-05
Packaged: 2021-03-05 20:01:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,039
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25720990
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aanau/pseuds/aanau
Summary: “Hey, what’s a guy gotta do to get a notebook around here?”Luke’s sword fighting lesson had dispersed for a water break, and Percy took his seat next to his best friend.“Probably check with Annabeth. The Athena kids always have tons of composition notebooks lying around.”Percy averted his gaze and kicked a rock into the center of the arena, “‘M not asking Annabeth,” he mumbled.Grover lowered his reed pipes to his lap and furrowed his eyebrows, “Embarrassed?”Percy blew out a puff of air, “Well, yeah! She’s gonna get all nosy and wonder why and what am I supposed to say? That I like to keep a diary?”
Relationships: Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson
Series: percy jackson the writer [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1851718
Comments: 2
Kudos: 78





	Passtimes

**Author's Note:**

> this one's kinda dialogue heavy.

“Hey, what’s a guy gotta do to get a notebook around here?” 

Luke’s sword fighting lesson had dispersed for a water break, and Percy took his seat next to his best friend. 

“Probably check with Annabeth. The Athena kids always have tons of composition notebooks lying around.”

Percy averted his gaze and kicked a rock into the center of the arena, “‘M not asking Annabeth,” he mumbled.

Grover lowered his reed pipes to his lap and furrowed his eyebrows, “Embarrassed?”

Percy blew out a puff of air, “Well, yeah! She’s gonna get all nosy and wonder why and what am I supposed to say? That I like to keep a diary?”

“There’s no shame in keeping a diary. I keep telling you this. Almost all of the Aphrodite and Apollo kids have ‘em, and no one picks on them for it! I promise you that people here are way cooler about this kind of stuff than kids at your schools.”

It went unsaid but understood that people at Camp Halfblood also didn’t subscribe to Smelly Gabe’s toxic standards of masculinity, and that Percy was not a ‘sissy’ for keeping a diary (though Percy would argue it’s a journal and not a diary, but in fact its use was by definition, the same thing). It took months of stuffing his notebook under his pillow when Grover walked into their dorm room before Percy finally admitted to him that he liked to write in his spare time (a hobby he picked up from his mom). And that writing did include recording details about his day and his thoughts and feelings. 

Again. By definition, a diary. 

“And Annabeth isn’t going to think less of you for it. In fact, to think she would is pretty ridiculous, Perce. I get why you’re embarrassed, but there’s no need. Not here.”

Percy was still getting used to the acceptance and inherently supportive atmosphere of camp (minus some exceptions, of course). He smiled, “Thanks, man. I guess I’ll ask Annabeth.”

Grover cocked an eyebrow, “You know Annabeth might even be impressed, right?”

Percy’s face went red and he started absently swinging his sword around, “Why would I care about impressing Annabeth?” 

Grover rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to his reed pipes, “Just go ask her, dude. It’ll be fine.”

__

Annabeth was sitting on the top of a picnic table hunched over her large sketchpad, lips pursed and eyebrows scrunched in concentration. Her hair was frizzy from a day of sweating in the humid July air, pulled back and wearing a bandana to keep the flyaways from sticking to her forehead. Percy didn’t dare interrupt her when she looked so intense. Then again, it was rare she _didn’t_ look intense. 

So, he swallowed his doubt and unconsciously straightened out his shirt as he approached. Annabeth’s eyes flickered up toward him, then quickly back down to her drawing. Her pencil moved rapidly as she made some finishing touches and looked up, her posture opening up but still clutching her pad, “What’s up? How was sword fighting?”

“Pretty good. Luke’s being weird, though.”

Annabeth rolled her eyes, “Would you lay off of him?”

“Hey! I like him! He’s a cool guy! He’s just been weird since our quest.”

Annabeth pursed her lips, “Well, it might be because of…” she trailed off.

Percy bent his head forward “...yeah?”

“Nevermind. Luke is fine.”

Percy rolled his eyes, “Okayyy....listen. I need a favor.”

Annabeth smirked. “You need a favor from me?”

“Don’t start, Wise Girl. I was wondering if you could get me a notebook. Preferably an empty, wide-ruled one.”

“What for?”

“Generally you use a notebook to write things in.”

“Shut up, you know what I meant.”

Percy put his hands in his pockets, “I like to write sometimes.”

Annabeth cocked an eyebrow.

“Really,” she said incredulously.

“Yes, really,” he scrunched his face up mockingly at her. "What, do you think I just stare at the walls in my spare time? I can have hobbies, too."

She raised her hands in surrender. “I just didn’t expect it, to be honest.”

Percy might’ve felt it as being an insult to his intelligence. It was what he had come to expect, not just from her, though when it came from her it definitely hurt more than he cared to admit. In actuality, Annabeth was surprised that Percy would genuinely enjoy sitting down and taking the time to write anything. He frequently complained about school, mainly writing assignments he failed at (or plagiarized to avoid trying), and he also remarked once or twice about his lack of imagination. But Annabeth understood how reading for pleasure was a totally different ballgame than reading for an assignment. One got her full, undivided attention while the other got her wanting to pull her hair out. 

The other thing that surprised her was how much of a contrast it was to the whole rebel skater vibes he usually gave off, though she had discovered early on that he was nothing like the initial image he presented. He very much wanted to follow the rules and be polite and kind to everyone. At least, until someone gave him good reason not to, then he was a nightmare. 

Percy’s eyes bore into hers, intense, waiting. Percy gave her flack for being intimidating, but he didn’t realize how standoffish his own gaze was. 

“I’ll get you one, no problem.”

Percy’s expression softened, relieved that she wasn’t making fun of him or anything. 

“One condition.”

And back on guard he went. 

“What,” he squinted.

“My birthday’s coming up. July 12th. It’s my thirteenth, so kinda a big deal. You better get me something good,” she pushed his shoulder playfully. His defensive stance turned to jelly and he put on a big goofy grin. 

“You got it. And my birthdays August 18th. Sooo this could be your early present to me.”

“No way, you’re getting something way more elite than a discount marble notebook for your thirteenth, Seaweed Brain.”

They laughed. Annabeth showed him the picture she was working on. She explained all of the architectural details of the building she had designed. He didn’t understand most of what she was saying, but he hung onto every word. 

**Author's Note:**

> i imagine percy got annabeth a fancy art portfolio or some really high-end art supplies, and she got him some inside joke sort of gift referencing their quest


End file.
